Psalm 9- Disciple

Psalm 9

For the director of music. To the tune of “The Death of the Son.” A psalm of David.

¹ I will give thanks to you, Lord, with all my heart;
    I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.

I will thank you for all that you do for me, God. I will be a disciple for you and tell my peers about all of the wonderful deeds you have done for this great Earth. 

 
² I will be glad and rejoice in you;
    I will sing the praises of your name, O Most High.

I will be so excited about you and rejoice in your Holy name (meaning I will sing, or attempt to, at church and praise your glorious name).

³ My enemies turn back;
    they stumble and perish before you.

My enemies will look back, they will turn around and fall at the greatness of your glory. Sorry, Satan, the fact that you looked back while you were running didn't help because Jesus was in front of you- in fact he was in front of you. Your fears might be behind you but run in to what's in front of you and you will be saved- or in Satan's case, you will be terminated and defeated.

 
⁴ For you have upheld my right and my cause,
    sitting enthroned as the righteous judge.

You believe in me. You're a king, sitting on your throne judging my moves- but aid me in what's right and wrong. 

 
⁵ You have rebuked the nations and destroyed the wicked;
    you have blotted out their name for ever and ever.

You have destroyed the wicket with an ink pin- writing "YOU ARE DESTROYED" all over the top of the blotted splotchiness of it all in red pen.

 
⁶ Endless ruin has overtaken my enemies,
    you have uprooted their cities;
    even the memory of them has perished.

 Ruin from Satan as overtaken my enemies souls- you took over their cities because they are evil. Their memory has even perished- after all, why would we want to look back on negative things? Everyone tends to block out those bad memories- even Jesus it seems.

⁷ The Lord reigns forever;
    he has established his throne for judgment.

The Lord reigns forever because he is the Holy one and he established his residence in that chair we all deem a throne because he's just THAT cool. Also, he established his residence a long long long time ago and he's allowed to judge us- he's the only one that is and we are subjected to his judgement when we come to the throne on "judgement day".

 
⁸ He rules the world in righteousness
    and judges the peoples with equity.

He rules the world in righteousness and judges people fairly. He uses his commandments to determine sin and what is right and wrong. 

 
⁹ The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed,
    a stronghold in times of trouble.

God is shelter for oppressed and he's there for you in those in times of trouble.

 
¹⁰ Those who know your name trust in you,
    for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you.

Those who know his name trust in him. He will never forsake these people who look for him and look to know him.

¹¹ Sing the praises of the Lord, enthroned in Zion;
    proclaim among the nations what he has done.

Sing the praises of the Lord that were exalted on a hill in Jerusalem where the Temple was built- Zion. Shout to the nations from the top of that hill what the Lord Jesus has done for all of us sinners- he died for each and every one of us- so that we could be saved and not punished for every single sin.

 
¹² For he who avenges blood remembers;
    he does not ignore the cries of the afflicted.

For those who avenge others- remember that he does not ignore the cries of help from the troubled.

¹³ Lord, see how my enemies persecute me!
    Have mercy and lift me up from the gates of death,

God, look and see how my enemies trouble me. Have mercy one me and lift me up from the gates of death (unsure of what this means...maybe from the gates of hell? Have mercy and send me to heaven?) 

 
¹⁴ that I may declare your praises
    in the gates of Daughter Zion,
    and there rejoice in your salvation.

I want to declare your name in praises in the gates near the community of other believers (my translation of Daughter Zion: church's faith in Jesus Christ). Let us rejoice in your salvation.

¹⁵ The nations have fallen into the pit they have dug;
    their feet are caught in the net they have hidden.

Those nations that fell in to Satan's hand- those ones we don't "remember" fell in to a pit they dug for themselves because their feet got caught in a net they can not find. 

 
¹⁶ The Lord is known by his acts of justice;
    the wicked are ensnared by the work of their hands.

God is known for his acts of justice and fairness. Sometimes we won't always think what he has to say is fair- but he is very clear in the Bible. We just like to think "fair" means nice a little too often. The wicked are captured in the work of evil done by their own hands. 

 
¹⁷ The wicked go down to the realm of the dead,
    all the nations that forget God.

The evil ones go down if they forget about their Savior, JC (Jesus Christ- my homie).

 
¹⁸ But God will never forget the needy;
    the hope of the afflicted will never perish.

Despite those who forget about him- Jesus will never forget those in need and the hope of troubled will never end because their will always be a reason to hope- Jesus Christ's salvation. 

¹⁹ Arise, Lord, do not let mortals triumph;
    let the nations be judged in your presence.

Arise, Lord- don't let morals triumph and let the nations be judged by you, the one true King.

 
²⁰ Strike them with terror, Lord;
    let the nations know they are only mortal.

Strike them with fear Lord and let them know of their sins. 

Psalm 8- the Creator of all things

Psalm 8[a]

For the director of music. According to gittith.^[b] A psalm of David.

¹ Lord, our Lord,
    how majestic is your name in all the earth!

You have set your glory
    in the heavens.

God your name is beautiful- you have set your fame in the heavens on high.

 
² Through the praise of children and infants
    you have established a stronghold against your enemies,
    to silence the foe and the avenger.

Through your adoration for your children you have established a castle against your enemies so you can silence those fighting against you.

 
³ When I consider your heavens,
    the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars,    

which you have set in place,

When I dream of heaven and how you created such a beautiful place with your bare hands- you even set the moon and the stars in just the right place.

 
⁴ what is mankind that you are mindful of them,
    human beings that you care for them?

You are attentive to people- and for what? Humans are nothing compared to you and you continue to so graciously care for them. 

⁵ You have made them^[d] a little lower than the angels^[e]
    and crowned them^[f] with glory and honor.

You have set them below the angels- but only slightly- because you crowned them with glory and honor.

 
⁶ You made them rulers over the works of your hands;
    you put everything under their^[g] feet:

You allow them to rule the works of the world and put everything in to their control.

 
⁷ all flocks and herds,
    and the animals of the wild,

every living breathing animal.

 
⁸ the birds in the sky,
    and the fish in the sea,
    all that swim the paths of the seas.

including birds, fish and every other creature that swims in the air and the sea.

⁹ Lord, our Lord,
    how majestic is your name in all the earth!

Lord, your name is majestic to the Earth- ruler on high.

Psalm 7- the Lord as my Shield- Superhero fighting off demons one sword at a time

Psalm 7

A shiggaion of David, which he sang to the Lord concerning Cush, a Benjamite.

¹ Lord my God, I take refuge in you;
    save and deliver me from all who pursue me,

Lord I look to you for my strength. Save me and deliver me from those who try to turn me to an evil eye. I'm lookin' at you Netflix, magazines, evil boys and mean girls.

 
² or they will tear me apart like a lion
    and rip me to pieces with no one to rescue me.

 if you don't they will rip me a part as much as a lion would. After I am ripped to pieces no one will be there to rescue me.

³ Lord my God, if I have done this
    and there is guilt on my hands—

God if I have sinned I have a guilty conscious- and that doesn't sit well with me. Sits as well as an elephant because there is an elephant taking up the room in my stomach. 

 
⁴ if I have repaid my ally with evil
    or without cause have robbed my foe—

If I give my enemy evil back instead of turning the other way I have done the same thing to them.

 
⁵ then let my enemy pursue and overtake me;
    let him trample my life to the ground
    and make me sleep in the dust. 

let me enemy overtake me if I submit to their level.

⁶ Arise, Lord, in your anger;
    rise up against the rage of my enemies.
    Awake, my God; decree justice.

Rise up in your disappointment of these actions of my enemies and demand justice.

 
⁷ Let the assembled peoples gather around you,
    while you sit enthroned over them on high.

Let the audience crowd around while your sitting in one of those things the kings in the movies (ironically a false god...) sit in.

 
⁸     Let the Lord judge the peoples.
Vindicate me, Lord, according to my righteousness,
    according to my integrity, O Most High.

Then you can judge the people and tell me what I have done wrong Lord. Question my integrity.

 
⁹ Bring to an end the violence of the wicked
    and make the righteous secure—
you, the righteous God
    who probes minds and hearts.

Bring the evil to an end. Bring the violence to an end. Make the righteous feel safe God- protect our minds and our hearts.

¹⁰ My shield^[d] is God Most High,
    who saves the upright in heart.

Father God you are my shield, my protector against all evil! You save me each and every day and protect my heart. You are my heart.
 
¹¹ God is a righteous judge,
    a God who displays his wrath every day.

God is righteous and judges fairly. We may not think he judges fairly because we lie about what is truly fair. In modern day our "rules" are so messed up and astray from our conservative roots. God displays his wrath every day. I struggle with this because he is also a forgiving God so I like to think everything is always "happy go lucky". Fair is fair, though. 
 
¹² If he does not relent,
    he^[e] will sharpen his sword;
    he will bend and string his bow.

If he is not forgiving (isn't he always...? confusion). This can be translated as the after life. If people are not saved by the time they die Jesus will sharpen his sword. 
 
¹³ He has prepared his deadly weapons;
    he makes ready his flaming arrows.

He has prepared deadly weapons- this means going to hell (my interpretation anyway).

¹⁴ Whoever is pregnant with evil
    conceives trouble and gives birth to disillusionment.

Whoever births evil brings on trouble and gives birth to belief.
 
¹⁵ Whoever digs a hole and scoops it out
    falls into the pit they have made.

This person who digs their hole of trouble must try and scoop it out- sending them in to the pit they have created on their own terms.
 
¹⁶ The trouble they cause recoils on them;
    their violence comes down on their own heads.

The trouble they caused continues to circle back to them and their violence comes down and crashes in on them. 

¹⁷ I will give thanks to the Lord because of his righteousness;
    I will sing the praises of the name of the Lord Most High.

I give thanks to the Lord for his fairness and his forgiving nature. I sing praises to the Lord Most High.

I think this is a threatening Psalm. Believe or you will be lost in the depths of hell; at least that's what I get out of it. God is a forgiving God but evil souls- until saved- are evil and God fights those for us.

Psalm 6- The Lord as my Hero

Psalm 6

¹ Lord, do not rebuke me in your anger
    or discipline me in your wrath.

God, please don't disapprove of me with your anger or discipline me with your fury.

 
² Have mercy on me, Lord, for I am faint;
    heal me, Lord, for my bones are in agony.

Please have mercy on me. Heal me because I am broken. 

 
³ My soul is in deep anguish.
    How long, Lord, how long?

My soul will not rest; I am suffering. How long will this continue God?

⁴ Turn, Lord, and deliver me;
    save me because of your unfailing love.

Lord, deliver me; save me with your unfailing love.

 
⁵ Among the dead no one proclaims your name.
    Who praises you from the grave?

I am guessing this means that no one praises you from the grave because their soul is praising you in heaven or wishing they were in hell.

⁶ I am worn out from my groaning.

All night long I flood my bed with weeping
    and drench my couch with tears.

I am exhausted from my tears filled with sin and hatred; I long for you.

 
⁷ My eyes grow weak with sorrow;
    they fail because of all my foes.

My eyes are tired from weeping; weeping caused by my enemies and false gods. 

⁸ Away from me, all you who do evil,
    for the Lord has heard my weeping.

Please get away from me you distracting evil people- the Lord has heard my call and I do not need curiosity to destroy me once again.
 
⁹ The Lord has heard my cry for mercy;
    the Lord accepts my prayer.

The Lord has heard my cry for his mercy and accepts my prayer.
 
¹⁰ All my enemies will be overwhelmed with shame and anguish;
    they will turn back and suddenly be put to shame.

God is saving me; he is my hero. All my enemies will be overwhelmed with shame and suffering. They will turn away and be put to shame. 

 The Lord is my hero always- he has saved me once again for the evil things attacking and suffocating me. I pray the demons to be far far away; I know this will not be the case though. Satan will continue to test my love for the Lord and tempt me with false gods and evil. The Lord will continue to be my hero through it all because he is my saving grace. 

Psalm 5- regret those who are not yet aware of redemption

For the director of music. For pipes. A psalm of David.

Listen to my words, Lord,
    consider my lament.

God, listen to what the words I pray.

² Hear my cry for help,
    my King and my God,
    for to you I pray.

Hear my cry asking for your help, please, I beg of you. 

³ In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice;
    in the morning I lay my requests before you
    and wait expectantly.

God I will pray to you in the morning laying awake thinking of you first thing. 

⁴ For you are not a God who is pleased with wickedness;
    with you, evil people are not welcome.

You're not a God that welcomes evil people (but really what so-called god would be okay with that?). However- God welcomes sinners to his kingdom- no one is as graceful as him. 

⁵ The arrogant cannot stand
    in your presence.
You hate all who do wrong;

The people who think they are doing no wrong will not be able to look you in the eye. You hate (in my opinion God loves all of his children and just hates the sinful act they are committing) those who do wrong and do not know you. You hate that they do not know you. 

⁶     you destroy those who tell lies.
The bloodthirsty and deceitful
    you, Lord, detest.

You destroy those who tell lies (wouldn't he want to destroy their lies and have them be redeemed?). He hates the act of bloodthirsty emotions and deceitful ways. 

⁷ But I, by your great love,
    can come into your house;
in reverence I bow down    toward your holy temple.

By your great love I am led in to your house; someday heaven. I bow down to you oh sovereign one. 

⁸ Lead me, Lord, in your righteousness
    because of my enemies—
    make your way straightbefore me.

Lead me with your strong hands and your righteousness. My enemies- those false gods have made the way foggy& I am asking you to make the way a straight path. 

⁹ Not a word from their mouth can be trusted;
    their heart is filled with malice.
Their throat is an open grave;
    with their tongues they tell lies.

Not a word from those false gods can be shaken because their hearts are filled with bad intentions. Their throat (meaning when they eat us as their own little meal) and they lie to us with their tongues (talking to us or asking us to take part in their ways) in order to entice us in. 

¹⁰ Declare them guilty, O God!

    Let their intrigues be their downfall.
Banish them for their many sins,
    for they have rebelled against you.

God make them guilty of the sin they commit- make them feel the Holy Spirit convicting them. Let their curiosity in YOU kill off their sin. Banish their sin because they have rebelled against you. 

¹¹ But let all who take refuge in you be glad;
    let them ever sing for joy.
Spread your protection over them,    that those who love your name may rejoice in you.

All of those that take refuge in you- be glad! Let them sing your name in joy and protect them. Help those who love your name rejoice in you and not be tempted by the evil in this world.

¹² Surely, Lord, you bless the righteous;    you surround them with your favor as with a shield. 

God you bless the righteous surround them with your shield because they rejoice your name. You have a plan for them and will not let harm come to them. 

Overall, God wants us to pray for those who are not convicted by the Holy Spirit and wants the false gods they worship to be destroyed and the sinful acts they commit to be killed with curiosity for him. 

Psalm 4

Psalm 4

For the director of music. With stringed instruments. A psalm of David.

¹ Answer me when I call to you,
    my righteous God.
Give me relief from my distress;
    have mercy on me and hear my prayer.

David is asking God to answer him- to give him a sign of some sort and to help him through his struggles. Many of us often do this and cling on anything that seems like a sign of some sort. We crave a tangible message from God.

² How long will you people turn my glory into shame?
    How long will you love delusions and seek false gods^[b]?^[c]

 God is asking how long will people turn my glory in to shame and worship these false gods and delusions that are not me?

 
³ Know that the Lord has set apart his faithful servant for himself;
    the Lord hears when I call to him.

God set apart his faithful servants for himself and he hears when we call to him- he hears everything we say to him- there might just not always be a tangible answer.

⁴ Tremble and^[d] do not sin;
    when you are on your beds,
    search your hearts and be silent.

Don't sin. Lie in bed and search your heart not act in sinful nature.

 
⁵ Offer the sacrifices of the righteous
    and trust in the Lord.

Trust in God and give him your all.

⁶ Many, Lord, are asking, “Who will bring us prosperity?”
    Let the light of your face shine on us.

Many wonder how their problems will be fixed and often turn to these false gods that will give them no hope. David asks God to shine light on him so people will find the light.

 
⁷ Fill my heart with joy
    when their grain and new wine abound.

Fill our hearts with your joy when we find you.

⁸ In peace I will lie down and sleep,
    for you alone, Lord,
    make me dwell in safety.

God, in peace I will sleep knowing I have you in my life and only you, no other false gods. I will be safe in your arms and will lead a life trying to be like you Lord in everything I do.

This Psalm is all about trusting in God, giving it your all to be like him and honoring him in the life you live.

More like Modern Day David- Psalm 3

Psalm 3^[a]

A psalm of David. When he fled from his son Absalom.

¹ Lord, how many are my foes!
    How many rise up against me!

Lord, how many enemies and struggles will I come across? 

 
² Many are saying of me,
    “God will not deliver him.”^[b] 

Many people tell me I will never become anything.

³ But you, Lord, are a shield around me,

    my glory, the One who lifts my head high.

But God I know you are protecting me and watching over me.

 
⁴ I call out to the Lord,
    and he answers me from his holy mountain.

I ask God and he answers me.

⁵ I lie down and sleep;
    I wake again, because the Lord sustains me.

I lie down to rest and I wake again because God allows me to wake again.

 
⁶ I will not fear though tens of thousands
    assail me on every side.

I don't fear the many people coming at me at different angles. 

⁷ Arise, Lord!
    Deliver me, my God!
Strike all my enemies on the jaw;
    break the teeth of the wicked.

I ask God to come to my side and help me escape the enemy and break the wicked curse they have placed on me. 

⁸ From the Lord comes deliverance.
    May your blessing be on your people


With God we can be delivered from evil and many blessings will come. 

Psalm 2

Psalm 2

¹ Why do the nations conspire^[a]
    and the peoples plot in vain?

Why do we, the people, conspire plots against God's word? Why do we continuously sin and purposely do so, asking for God's grace in advance?

 
² The kings of the earth rise up
    and the rulers band together
    against the Lord and against his anointed, saying,

The fake rulers and false gods we worship such as electronics, television, careers, etc. go against the Lord.

 
³ “Let us break their chains
    and throw off their shackles.”

Let's break people of their will to live for God and have them live for us instead. Let them worship us- the television shows, jobs, money and all other false gods.

⁴ The One enthroned in heaven laughs;
    the Lord scoffs at them.

Those above laugh at our mistakes as God is the one and only true God and the Lord scoffs at them, wishing we would worship him and only him.

 
⁵ He rebukes them in his anger
    and terrifies them in his wrath, saying,

He terrifies them exclaiming...

 
⁶ “I have installed my king
    on Zion, my holy mountain.”

Here, the kingdom of God should be founded.

⁷ I will proclaim the Lord’s decree:

He said to me, “You are my son;
    today I have become your father.

 I'll shout to the rooftops: Jesus is my absolute Savior and he is my father who reigns in heaven. I am a daughter of heaven.

 
⁸ Ask me,
    and I will make the nations your inheritance,
    the ends of the earth your possession.

 All you children have to do is ask me- and I will give you everything

 
⁹ You will break them with a rod of iron^[b];
    you will dash them to pieces like pottery.”

Modern day Paul is unsure exactly what this means... maybe that God wants you to not care about the possessions he gives you and he wishes that you would shatter them like pottery before him to prove you love for him and not your worshiping over the false gods.

¹⁰ Therefore, you kings, be wise;
    be warned, you rulers of the earth.

Therefore you rulers of yourselves be warned about those false gods that can overcome you.

 
¹¹ Serve the Lord with fear
    and celebrate his rule with trembling.

Serve the Lord your God afraid of what you would do without him- celebrate terrified to not do so

 
¹² Kiss his son, or he will be angry
    and your way will lead to your destruction,
for his wrath can flare up in a moment.
    Blessed are all who take refuge in him.

Know Jesus, his son. If you don't- this will lead to your own destruction. 

Basically- love the Lord your God over false gods that rule the Earth. He is the one and only God and blessed are those who serve him, live for him, honor him. 

Psalm 1

Book 1
Psalms 1-41 translated modern day Paul

¹ Blessed is the one
    who does not walk in step with the wicked
or stand in the way that sinners take
    or sit in the company of mockers,
² but whose delight is in the law of the Lord,
    and who meditates on his law day and night.
³ That person is like a tree planted by streams of water,
    which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither—
    whatever they do prospers.

⁴ Not so the wicked!
    They are like chaff
    that the wind blows away.
⁵ Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
    nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.

⁶ For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous,
    but the way of the wicked leads to destruction.

Modern Paul: So basically guys- don't hang out with people that are going to bring you down and make you do things you shouldn't be doing. God wants us to live and breathe the Word- this means spending time with people that will help you be at your best- your best for Jesus. 

My only argument for this is that you should be strong enough to hang out with the sinners so that you can spread the word of God. Of course you need those strong believers there to support you along the way in case you fall astray. 

This is hard. Things I struggle with: what about my friends at school that don't live the life that I necessarily want to lead? Should I not hang out with them because I am more likely to sin? How do I live and breathe the word if I can't even talk to my best friends about God? What about all the times I have messed up? Does that put me in the "wicked" category for my believer friends that are trying to live a holy life?

Every one of us is going to have struggles and it is hard to live the life God desires us to live- but without him we are not at our absolute best and do not feel whole. There is a line with friends and you must know when to cut the cord when a friendship turns poisonous but also when to be there for a friend that sometimes leads you down questionable paths.